Leveraging Hyper-V to Cut VMware Costs

24th Jan 2025

Can We Leverage Hyper-V to Cut VMware Costs?

That’s a good question with a not so clear-cut answer. The real answer depends on your Microsoft licensing, contract timing, environment scope and willingness to adopt new technology. Given VMware’s price hikes, it’s worth considering if your IT team is open to change and quick analysis is feasible.

VMware controls nearly half of the hypervisor market, especially among large enterprises. After Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware in late 2023, massive price increases—reportedly over 1,000% in some cases—prompted organizations to seek alternatives like Hyper-V, Nutanix and cloud platforms.

Key Factors for Hyper-V Viability: 

  1. Microsoft Licensing:
    Organizations with Windows Server licenses are already entitled to use Hyper-V, but management tools like System Center Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) may require separate or Core Infrastructure Suite licensing. Using VMM or another management tool may cost 25–35% of your VMware costs. 
  2. Contract Timing:
    If your VMware agreement was recently renewed, it may not be the right time to switch. Evaluations can take 9–12 months. However, if new hardware with more core capacity is in the roadmap, you might save costs by reconsidering Hyper-V prior to deployment. 
  3. Environment Scope:
    Testing Hyper-V in non-production environments can help evaluate its reliability without disrupting operations. Assessing Hyper-V to identify technical shortcomings can be accomplished in non-production at much lower risk. 
  4. Cloud Roadmap:
    If a significant cloud migration is planned short term, investing in more on-premises licensing and peoples’ skills may not align with long-term goals. And while Windows Server licensing can be used in Azure and OCI (BYOL), and in more restrictive ways with AWS and GCP (Dedicated Hosts), in both instances System Center has fewer benefits and value. 
  5. People and Skills:
    Adoption depends on organizational buy-in. If your outsourcer specializes in VMware, IT staff resist learning Hyper-V, or management fears disruptions, a migration may stall or never get off the ground. Success requires support across multiple levels and a commitment to skill-building. 

If you’re shocked by VMware’s pricing, evaluating Hyper-V is logical. However, timing, analysis, and organizational readiness are key considerations. Remend’s experts have years of experience with Microsoft licensing, financial analysis, cost-saving strategies and implementing Hyper-V to guide you through the evaluation process.